The Eye of the Soul
by Yuuki Hayashi
Summary: Did you ever wonder what the old man in the Tell-Tale Heart thought? Did you ever wonder exactly what fueled the man to kill the old man? Did you ever wonder who they were? And where exactly do Light and Ryuk tie in?


Hey! This is actually my third story, and the second one I've updated in a LONG time...Okay, so this is based on Edgar Allen Poe's the "Tell-Tale Heart" with a twist! You've all been wondering what that old man thought, right? Right? I know you wanted to~ So this story is in his perspective, before he died, with (can you guess?) another twist to the ending!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the "Tell-Tale Heart" or anything else by Edgar Allen Poe, because then I would be a depressed emo junkie...

* * *

><p>True, you have all heard this story before, maybe, maybe not. But you have never heard it from <em>my<em> perspective before. Before I begin, I must warn you, I am _not_ mad. I was righteous to have this tale end the way it did, and you shall all know that. So do not call me mad, for this is a tale that you have known before, yet never even knew.

It is impossible to tell you when I first conceived the idea as such, but maybe he and I had gotten the same devil-sent message at the same time. But nevertheless, the idea haunted me. Perhaps I had no reason to think the way I did, for I loved the young man. He was my dear friend. He had never mistreated me, nor insulted me. I had no desire at all for his belongings. But alas, I did not know what my eye did to him, as he did not know what his eye brought upon me.

Those eyes! Those terribly murky gray eyes that held no warmth, no emotion! Such a dark, gloomy gray they were, like the sky on a day when the blood of thousands of warriors ran on the battlefield. I remember that day well, so dark, and so close to the ice-cold fire of Hell. His eyes reflected the deepest, darkest depths of his soul. Strange though, they had never bothered me before! So why, why _now_? Only later would I know that it was because that hated one had possessed his soul, but I learned so, much too late.

Now, do you understand my pain? He was one that I had loved so, my dear, dear friend. Yet I had the idea of—no, I cannot say yet. But the pain of hurting a friend was at war with my intense desire to do exactly that! Surely HE had possessed me too! But, no matter, it was eating me up, ever so slowly, from the depths of my own corrupted soul.

Alas! I was never more lenient to the boy than that week before I died. I was never more like a kind old man who would care for his grandchildren. And every night, at about two in the morning, I would unlock the latch to his door and open it—oh, ever so cautiously and gently! And when there was enough space, I put in a dark lantern, shut so tightly even the sun couldn't escape. And then, I thrust in my head, oh, ever so slowly! I took care not to disturb him and let loose a single, thin ray of light onto his face. And alas, HIS eyes were never, ever open, and so, I did not continue any further, for it was not him that disturbed me. It was his eyes! Those dreadful, murky, soulless eyes that made the very blood in my veins freeze. They brought back dark memories, and I vowed to kill him, but I was too late.

Perhaps I felt the cloak of death upon me, my time was coming soon, and I had to act, and yet, I could not. What a fool I was for not suspecting anything! He spoke to me so normally, and I replied, hiding my dark thoughts behind cheerful good mornings and benevolent wishes. Upon that eighth night, that very last night of my physical existence, I heard a sound. A light creak that brought with it the chilling wind of death nearby. I immediately sat up in bed, crying out—"Who's there?" I received no reply. By then, you could imagine my fright! I knew I was to make up for my sins that night, yet I still tried to convince myself that it was only the wind, or a small animal scurrying across the room. But I knew better. And, feeling my time craw ever closer, I let out a groan of mortal terror. It was all in vain. The shadow of death was upon me, I could feel it, and lost in my own regrets, I did not sense the room suddenly brighten, nor think about closing my eye. It became so, my fatal mistake.

Having an inkling about what was to come, the very marrow in my bones chilled, my blood froze, and I could not move. My own dreadful heart beat ever quicker, so that even HE could hear it. My terror was so extreme that I was amazed that I was not dead already. My heart felt like it should burst. My hour had come.

Then, he leapt into the room, and I shrieked but only once. Shrieked in all my regrets that he had gotten me before I could get him, and vowed to get revenge in the afterlife. I would get my revenge, I saw to that! And after a while, my muffled heart beats stopped, and I was dead—stone dead.

Yet my senses did not dull in the least! I still knew what was going on, knew everything that was happening. I had become a spectre. My soul wandering about the air, I could feel Death chuckling behind me, allowing me a chance to get my revenge so that he could catch two birds with one stone. But that didn't matter to me! I would make him feel the pain that he had caused me, those dreadful memories of my youth that he had brought up!

You want to know what his eye reminded me of, right? Well, back when I was a young man of about his age, I was in my early twenties, mind you. But back then, I was an outlaw, a mercenary, killing many just for the money and for the fun of it. One day, we were hired for a war. We far outnumbered our opponents, yet I don't know how but, in the end, I was the only one standing. The blood of my comrades ran through the land, staining the soil red, blood red. My dearest best friend had died in that war— and I hadn't been able to protect him. That day, the sky had been murky gray, perhaps it was an omen of my future, but I never noticed all the hints. And now, I was prepared to atone for my sins, but I would take him with me.

Hah! The police officers came over, and he had thought that he had fooled them! Well, I would make him confess his sin, no doubt about that. He was having coffee with those police officers, feigning ignorance and innocence. But I knew better. He was growing frantic with each passing minute. 'Why won't they leave?', he thought. And I had started my work, coaxing him to commit his next crime.

The ringing he heard, he thought it was just his conscience, or the beating of my dead heart, but I knew that it was simply the fact that with our requests and his next crime, it was the sign of his impending death. I chuckled as he was driven mad by the ringing, covering his ears in vain. "This is the pain that you caused me", I whispered in his ear, causing him to finally crack. He confessed his crime, but having been driven insane, he ended up slaughtering those police officers before they could arrest him. And as he sat there, holding the very knife he had used to hack me into pieces, his last second of existence passed. And so, my dear young friend died—of cause of a heart attack…and guilt.

And to this very day, as we atone for our sins in Hell, I still torture and tease him about it, but well, let's just say our very deaths reunited us—all of us, as friends again.

XOXOXOXO(**Death Note**)XOXOXOXO

Unbeknownst to them, somewhere in Japan at the time, a young man closes a notebook, the page he had just finished writing on containing the names of the young and old man who had just died, and details to how they had so. The cover of the book remains unseen, but a glimpse is caught of the title—"Death Note". The teenager turns to the death god behind him and simply says "Well, we took out two more criminals, right Ryuk? An old mercenary who slaughtered many people, and a madman who caused the death of his friends. And they'll never know that it was actually me who manipulated them to their deaths." And the death god replies, chuckling, "Yes, Light." And the chase was on.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Could you guess? Did you like it? I definitely can't compare to Mr. Poe, but this is what I thought happened, but, of course, Light was the cause of it all. :D Did you find it interesting? I wrote this for an English assignment and I really hope you guys enjoyed it! Have a review? A criticism? Just want to rant? Feel free to physically abuse the green button below! (I'm so sorry you're being abused by me, review button) Every review counts, and I'd love to hear your thoughts~ (Gives pocky)


End file.
